


No Regrets

by virusq



Category: Star Wars Legends: Thrawn Trilogy - Timothy Zahn
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-25
Updated: 2015-12-25
Packaged: 2018-05-09 04:01:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 798
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5524649
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/virusq/pseuds/virusq
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Karrde's a dog person; he just doesn't know it yet.</p>
            </blockquote>





	No Regrets

**Author's Note:**

  * For [bluehooloovo](https://archiveofourown.org/users/bluehooloovo/gifts).



“No,” Talon Karrde stated flatly, as Aves thrust a bird across his desk. It was a member of the local fauna; drab and unremarkable, known to scream in frequencies that interfered with cheap comms.

“But he’s adorable,” Aves protested, cradling the bird in his jacket. “He has a broken wing; I can’t throw him back over the fence.”

“Absolutely not.”

A moment passed and the men stared at each other. Aves plied for pity; Karrde remained stern. Aves relented a sigh, and a barely perceptible crinkle of regret flashed across Karrde’s eyes. 

Ave pounced. “You won’t regret it!”

Karrde frowned.

\---

No one expects a routine patrol to change their life. It’s recommended that one refrain from such thoughts when on patrol, especially when driving through the territory of carnivorous mammals.

Prime example: the vornskr that leapt from the underbrush and annihilated Karrde’s speeder, throwing Karrde into the underbrush.

The vornskr snapped viciously, but Karrde had his blaster. The creature was not as quick as the searing bolt. It howled in pain and curled on itself.

He couldn’t leave it.

When Karrde pushed the vornskr laden speeder through the main gate, Aves gave him _the look_.

“Not a word,” Karrde warned.

\---

The only place large enough to contain the recovering beast was Karrde’s apartment. 

He said he didn’t want the creature destroying valuables in the containment cells, and none of the storage facilities had climate control, but Chin knew better. He recognized Karrde’s concern for the animal in the way he kept stealing glances across his desk while Chin cleaned the dog's wound.

Satisfied with its wellbeing, Chin scratched the vornskr behind the ears. “What will you name him?”

Karrde raised an eyebrow. “We’re not keeping him.”

Chin smiled. “He looks like a Stormy.”

“No.”

“What’s the word? Sturm?”

Karrde sighed.

\---

Gillespie was in on the secret. 

It was the worst kept secret on Myrkr. Karrde had been seen around the base uncharacteristically disheveled from frequent walks. Chin warned the crew to keep their comments to themselves; potty training’s a bitch.

Regardless, Gillespie tempted fate and dispatched the distress call directly to Karrde’s comm. Then Karrde stood before him, arms-crossed, and clearly contemplated his demise.

Gillespie jerked a thumb at the creature in the perimeter trap. “Can I keep him?”

“No.” The skin around his eyes tightened; Gillespie wasn’t sure if it was either exhaustion or exasperation. “Take him to Chin.”

\---

Karrde tidied his workspace while Chin surveyed the man’s handiwork. The vornskr’s docked tail was expertly cleaned and stitched; not a hair out of place.

Chin had long suspected that Karrde was a man of many talents, but he’d never guessed ‘surgeon’ made the list. 

Military service? Hospital apprenticeship? Perhaps Karrde’s familial attachment to his crew stemmed from poor experiences with a high turnover rate at a previous organization.

“Speak your mind,” Karrde prompted, disposing of bloodied gloves.

Chin bobbed his head. “Reminds me of a guy named Danyl.”

“Close.” Karrde’s lips curled imperceptibly. “I’ve named him Drang.”

Chin beamed.

\---

Sturm and Drang adapted quickly to life on the base. Frequent walks around the perimeter reduced unwanted traffic from intruders; they chased anything that didn’t get the signal. They were also an unexpected hit with the ladies.

Training wasn’t Karrde’s forte, but Holonet searches concluded that most mammals could be bribed with cheese. He didn’t think anything of it until Aves asked if the same method worked on Ghent. 

Karrde and the vornskrs cocked their head to the side. In unison.

“Oh, no,” Aves gawked at the trio. “You’ve … become _one of us_.”

Karrde was officially a dog person.

\---

Entertaining as a dog person proved quite challenging. Preparing any meal required extra patience and fortification. Any unattended wine glass would be drained before you remembered it. There were also precautionary measures regarding stains.

Whereas Karrde wasn’t generally one for companionship, the boys were popular with the ladies. It started with young women that declaring themselves dog-walkers and generally ended with patronly disapproval.

Generally.

A slicer hit him with a list of demands, once; negotiation was rocky until the boys intervened. Puppy love smoothed her thorny persona; Karrde smoothed the rest.

Sturm earned a slice of cheese for that.

\---

A monsoon dropped the base into a precautionary blackout, one summer evening. Karrde and the dogs retired early to watch the storm. The vornskrs hated storms, and retreating before the beasts devolved into giant pansies was key.

They watched the storm roll across the forest. Karrde sat on a cushion, left leg trapped under Sturm’s snoring bulk. On his right, Drang’s barbed tongue lashed affectionately at his face. Satisfied that Karrde’s beard oil was completely removed, Drang curled up beside him.

Karrde wiped vornskr drool from his datapad before resuming work.

‘You won’t regret it!’ Aves had promised.

Karrde chuckled.


End file.
